Chelsea: Ross Barkley showed how he is the key to Maurizio Sarri’s XI

After a scintillating performance against Southampton, it finally seems Ross Barkley has seized his chance and embraced his role in Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea team

What a long, strange trip it’s been for Ross Barkley at Chelsea. After a series of nasty, unfortunate injuries brought his future for England and Everton into doubt, Barkley almost completed a seemingly last-ditch, desperation effort to come to Stamford Bridge. But rumor has it Barkley walked out of his physical and halted the move until January 2018.

He still had a way to go before seeing the pitch. In addition to being rusty, Barkley did not quite fit into Antonio Conte’s system. After being left out of the England squad for the 2018 World Cup, Barkley put his future into his own hands. He took advantage of the few weeks he had with Maurizio Sarri and made the best of it. The Italian took a liking to the English midfielder and Barkley entered the season in the best shape of his life. However, meaningful opportunities still seemed few and far between as Barkley struggled to make an impact.

Now, after notching his first goal with Chelsea and assisting on another against Southampton, Barkley has a solid foundation and understanding of what he truly means to the Blues.

Chelsea has one of the best midfields in the Premier League. With Jorginho and Kante as regulars in the starting XI, there is one spot still up for grabs in Sarri’s 4-3-3. Mateo Kovacic came in and almost immediately occupied that spot. Kovacic has proved to be an incredible off-season acquisition for the Blues. But Barkley has given Sarri something new to consider.

Kovacic’s link up play with Eden Hazard is brilliant, his passing and strength superb. But one area Kovacic undoubtedly needs to improve is his play in the final third. The Croatian provides very little going forward. Kovacic’s shooting ability – or lack thereof – shows why he failed to solidify a place in the Real Madrid XI.

With Jorginho and Kante, two defensive midfielders, having locked in their places, what can Kovacic offer in the left central midfield spot that requires an attacking prowess? At the time, not much. That’s not to say Kovacic cannot improve. Simply at the moment he doesn’t represent the answer to Chelsea’s needs.

But here’s where things get tricky. Neither did Barkley before Sunday. The only reason Barkley started is because Kovacic was called into 90 minutes of action mid-week against MOL Vidi and needed a break. Nevertheless, Barkley made the most of his chance. Other than Hazard, Barkley was the best player on the pitch, with his first Chelsea goal and tallying an assist. So, what does that mean going forward?

It means Barkley may have won himself the starting spot. While Hazard has been flawless thus far, he cannot bail the Blues out in every situation. Neither striker is a serious goal-scoring threat (although Alvaro Morata may be getting there) and, other than the occasional Pedro strike, neither is the right wing position. Marcos Alonso got off to a hot start in the attack, but has seemed to embrace his more defensive role – as he should – recently. Chelsea need another goal scorer in the starting XI.

Fielding a midfield three of Jorginho, Kante and Kovacic has worked thus far because of Hazard’s brilliance. But how long can they sustain this?

Maurizio Sarri has noted multiple times the Blues are still a step behind teams like Liverpool and Manchester City. But they really aren’t, as displayed by last week’s performances against the Reds. The only real difference between the current top three sides is Chelsea’s lack of goal-scoring threats.

This makes Ross Barkley a vital piece of Sarri’s puzzle. Until January, this is the Chelsea squad Sarri has to work with. With Barkley finally getting on the scoresheet and making contributions in the final third, Chelsea finally have another playmaking threat.

Against Southampton, Barkley did what Sarri has been looking for from one of his midfielders all season. In a game where Chelsea dominated possession, as they will all season, they struggled to create chances on goal. Barkley ignited the team with his assist in the first half and a goal in the second, something the Blues have missed in games like the one at West Ham.

Going forward, Barkley needs to build on his performance against Southampton to keep his team in the title race until the January transfer window. His passing in the final third can improve, he can find better ways to get into space and his finishing needs work. He has the ability – he showed it at Everton. If Barkley performs half as well as he did during his peak at Everton, Chelsea have a serious chance of making an unexpected run at the title.

And at just 24 years of age, Ross Barkley can represent the ideal Sarrismo midfielder for years to come.